AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Alice hesitated. She had the impulse to give a false name. But it sounded as though the guest house had changed hands. Besides, no one would remember her from decades earlier. ‘Alice Beaumont.’ She got out her bank card to make the reservation.
‘I’m arriving by taxi in a couple of hours.’
The taxi driver said, ‘What about your pets?’
‘Oh, crumbs, I almost forgot …’ Alice recalled that the guest house had accepted pets. But that was years earlier. It wasn’t surprising that the guest house had changed hands in the intervening time. But did they still accept people bringing along their pets?’
The young lady heard the taxi driver. ‘Yes, we do. It’s what attracts a lot of our guests who bring their dogs.’
‘That’s wonderful.’ Alice breathed a sigh of relief until her eyes roved over to Marley and Percy. ‘The thing is …’
‘So, we will see you at six. Will you be dining in?’
‘Oh – yes.’ Alice recalled the remoteness of the guest house. Tucked away at the end of a single street of cottages that led down to a sheltered shingle cove. It felt remote, although it wasn’t far from the Victorian seaside resorts of Southwold and Aldeburgh. However, without a car, she’d need to call a taxi to take her to one of the towns. And she knew she had her pets to consider, so she wouldn’t have the opportunity to go out for an evening meal even if she wanted to.
Besides it wasn’t Alice’s intention to venture far from the guest house. She didn’t want to visit the bustling little seaside towns; she just wanted a few days on her own to take walks along the beach and perhaps resume a hobby she hadn’t pursued for years – sketching and painting.
Alice was about to mention the other guests whom she’d brought with her – her two other pets – when she heard a click on the other end of the line. She’d been cut off.
‘So, they have vacancies?’ the taxi driver asked.
Alice replied, ‘Yes.’ She handed back his phone. ‘Thanks.’ She sat back in her seat, hoping there wouldn’t be a problem when she arrived with her dog, her grumpy cat, and her rude parakeet.
Chapter 8
Jeffrey walked into his study and immediately spotted the shoebox on his desk. ‘Where did this come from?’
‘What?’ Freya asked.
Jeffrey whirled around. He hadn’t realised that Freya had followed him into his study. Jeffrey had been talking to himself. He stood in front of his desk, the box hidden behind his back, and said nonchalantly, ‘Ah, Freya, I didn’t realise you were there. Just talking to myself.’
Freya frowned. ‘You never talk to yourself.’
‘Well, there’s a first time for everything,’ he said, eyeing her nervously, hoping she hadn’t spotted the box.
Freya shrugged. ‘So, what did you think of the flat?’
He frowned. The flat was the last thing on his mind. ‘Have you seen your mother?’
‘No, I’ve just walked into the house, remember?’ She rolled her eyes. ‘Do you want me to find her? Is it about the flat? I knew you liked it.’
It wasn’t about the flat, and no, Jeffrey didn’t like it. In fact, although he had been perfectly civil to the estate agent and had agreed with her when she’d gushed about the place because stupidly he didn’t want to hurt her feelings, he realised he’d given his daughter the wrong impression. Unfortunately, just like his wife, he was beginning to wonder if they’d ever find anything that suited them.
He looked at Freya. She was staring back at him. ‘MUM!’ she shouted out.
Jeffrey winced, wishing she wouldn’t do that. He fingered the box behind his back. He would much rather have a private conversation with Alice. Besides, in a house this size, you couldn’t just call for someone and they’d come running.
‘Theo!’
Freya’s partner appeared at the door. ‘Oh, you’re back. I heard you calling for your mum. She’s gone out.’
Jeffrey looked at Theo, thinking that he must have been in the kitchen next door getting another snack. Although Jeffrey was relieved that Freya’s partner had secured another job after his redundancy, the problem was that he was working from home, their home, and he was eating a great deal.
‘Did she say where?’ Jeffrey asked, still fingering the box behind him, wondering where Alice had found it. He knew he’d put it somewhere ‘safe’ years earlier, but while they had been packing the house up he hadn’t been able to think where. And now she’d found it. Or come across it by chance.
‘No, she didn’t say where she was going. She was up in the loft and—’
Jeffrey slapped his forehead. Of course, that was it!
